Logs Reveal New iPad Models Being Tested in Cupertino

Just as we reported that Apple is expected to announce a trio of new iPad Pro models as early as next week, mobile marketing firm Fiksu is now said to have spotted a number of new iPad models being tested in Cupertino and nearby locations, according to TechCrunch. Fiksu’s raw data, which is showing four different iPad models, comes from its tracking and attribution SDK, which is used by thousands of mobile apps.

The firm says that it saw the same number of devices tested before the release of the last two iPad Pros, which means we could potentially see anywhere from two to four new iPads soon hitting the market. Fiksu says that as part of Apple’s testing process, it installs a variety of apps from popular ones to the more obscure, which inevitably ends up including some apps that include its tracking.

Each type of iOS device has a different model name, explains Fiksu. These are generally sequential, the firm says. About a month ahead of the most recent iPad Pro launches, it saw internal model names “6,3/6,4” and “6,7/6,8” being tested around Cupertino. This time around it’s seeing “7,1” “7,2,” “7,3,” and “7,4.”

There are only a handful of these devices appearing in its logs, Fiksu found. (See chart below)

Device | Count

iPad 7,3 | 5

iPad 7,4 | 10

iPad 7,2 | 11

iPad 7,1 | 17

The source notes that all the usage is from the greater San Francisco Bay area, including Cupertino and nearby locations. The usage was also spread across a range of generally popular apps, like games, music, real estate and weather applications.